Down On The Farm
by LadyKnight1990
Summary: It all began when Holly collapsed that one day in Westown and was treated by the town doctor. From that moment of kindness, sprung something that neither of them could have ever imagined (FordXHolly, WayneXLisette). Rated T to be on the safe side.


p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"Holly woke up that morning feeling a little bit groggy, like she'd been hit like a truck. It was strange, as she normally didn't feel that way, but she put it down to the night before, where she'd gone to bed later than usual after having spent extra time ensuring that her cow was in good shape for the next Animal Festival./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"Figuring that she'd just stay on the farm that day, she stumbled out of bed, sneezed, ate breakfast, got dressed, then checked her satchel to ensure that she had enough stock for the day. She groaned when she discovered that she had in fact run out of crispy treats for the farm animals and realised that she must have used the last of them yesterday without even realising./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"span style="font-style: italic;"Talk about a crappy start to the day,/span Holly thought to herself as she headed outdoors to begin watering her crops./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"A few hours later, the sun was high in the sky and it was an span style="font-style: italic;"incredibly/span warm day. Holly was only halfway through watering her crops when she sneezed yet again, looked at her watch and realised what the time was. span style="font-style: italic;"Geez, /spanshe thought, span style="font-style: italic;"normally I can get through all the crops AND tending to the animals before lunchtime. What's wrong with me? Am I allergic to something? /spanStill feeling somewhat groggy, she put her tools away before wandering off towards the crossroads./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"At the crossroads, Holly sneezed again, this time causing the animals to panicspan style="font-style: italic;". Is it the flowers/span? She wondered./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"She shook herself out of her thoughts and headed off in the direction of Westown, figuring that some lunch at the Garden Grill and some antihistamines from Dr. Ford would do the trick./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"Unfortunately, she didn't even get as far as Dr. Ford's clinic. By the time she'd gone past her Uncle Frank's house, she felt extremely thirsty, tired, warm and dizzy. Stumbling into the main town, she managed to make out little Horatio standing there with the list of jobs on offer for the day, before her vision went cloudy. She heard a yell off in the distance, turned her head towards it, then passed out cold./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"Ford had been coming back down from a delicious lunch at the Garden Grill and was heading towards Horatio to give him a list of odd jobs when he caught sight of Holly wandering into the town. Was it just his imagination or did she seem…flushed? She almost looked like she was about to collapse either from the sheer heat or from something else. Was she sick maybe? She'd been coughing a little at the last Beverage Bash and had seemed off somehow. He'd hoped that she would actually make a smart decision and come visit him, but she'd been avoiding him for some reason./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;""Holly!" Ford called out, hoping to catch her attention and maybe, justspan style="font-style: italic;" maybe,/span convince her to come to the clinic so that he could ensure that she was alright. She turned her head towards him with a somewhat dazed expression on her face, before she passed out cold right in front of him. Ford quickly rushed to her side and placed a hand on her shoulder, being ready to gently shake her, until he realised that her face was absolutely drenched in sweat. Ford looked at her face, flushed yet peaceful and put a hand to her forehead. She was burning up./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"Calling out to Horatio, Ford and the young man picked up Holly between them and carried her to the clinic. While Ford could have easily done it himself, he didn't want anyone to get the wrong impression. He fumbled with the door for a moment, then carrying her in, gently laid her down on one of the beds in the clinic./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;""Thank you Horatio," Ford said once he was sure that she at least appeared comfortable. He then began to prepare a vial of medication and a needle. He set those down on the table next to her bed and looked around for something to help bring her fever down. Finding only a towel, he ran it under the cold water, wrung it out and carried it over to the bed. She looked as though she was sleeping, if not for the fact that she was running a fever./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"Gently stroking her hair out of her face, he placed the cloth on her head and waited for her to wake up./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"The first thing that Morgan felt when she woke up was that her forehead was wet./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"Secondly, she was lying on something softspan style="font-style: italic;". Where am I/span? She wondered as the rest of the room slowly came into view. A tan ceiling…white bedcovers…the somewhat sharp tang of disinfectant with a slight hint of something flowery. Then she realised…she was in Dr. Ford's clinic. And speaking of Dr. Ford…/p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;""Ah, you're awake," he said. He came over and picked up something to her immediate left./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"It took her all of two seconds to realise that he was holding a needle in one hand and a vial of something (medicine?) in the other. She drew in a sharp breath, sat right up, resulting in the cloth sliding off her forehead and turned pale./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;""Do I really need that?" she said, her breaths coming in a little quicker now. He moved closer to her, needle in one hand, vial in the other./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;""It's just something to help you feel better," he said calmly, not quite noticing her reaction at first. He began to draw up the medication into the syringe and it was then that he noticed that rather than looking flushed, she'd now gone quite pale. Her eyes were wide and her breathing was very fast as she stared down at the needle in his hand./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;""Holly, your reaction is quite unusual, is there a reason why you are staring at me like that?" he looked at the needle, then at her. Then it clicked./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;""Are you afraid of needles?"/p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"He put the vial away and disposed of the needle, then turned back around to find her sitting up on the bed./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;""I can't stay here," she said, pulling off the bedcovers, "I need to look after my crops and my animals and…" she tried to get up, before Ford gently pushed her back down onto the bed./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;""You are not going anywhere," he said firmly, "you passed out right in front of me, you are" - and here he placed a hand on her head to find it still warm - "still sick and you need to rest."/p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;""Although I didn't think this would cause you to pass out though," he pondered. She sneezed again, then looked down. She grimaced at her stomach betrayed her and let out a rumble. Ford looked up and asked if she'd eaten lunch. Her face said it all. Ford could feel himself growing worried - if she hadn't eaten much today, she would likely pass out again./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;""What were you thinking?!" He shouted suddenly, causing her to startle, "you should've come to me! You've clearly not been taking care of yourself…" and on and on he went about the fact that it was important for her to take care of herself, lest her animals and crops suffer. Meanwhile, Holly was feeling more and more upset, on top of feeling sick./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt;"Hspan style="color: #002060;"e must have realised after a while however, as he stopped and stared down at her, feeling slightly guilty, then softened his voice. /span/p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;""…I apologise. That wasn't intended to be an attack on you, just seeing you in that state..." he paused for a moment as if choosing his words carefully, "Please don't push yourself so hard and next time you feel sick, you should come and see me before it gets this bad. Take that not as orders from your doctor, but advice…" he paused, contemplating something for a moment,"…from a friend."/p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"Holly let out a faint smile and laid back down on the pillows. span style="font-style: italic;"Friends huh?/span She felt something stirring in her chest, but brushed it off as her still feeling sick. Ford gave a very small smile when he noticed that she had finally laid back down on the pillows. She needed to rest, that much was important./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;""Now if you'll excuse me, I have other duties to attend to," Ford said, hoping that she would get the hint and fall asleep. She turned her head towards the wall and her breathing began to slow down, until she let out a soft sigh. He watched her for a moment, then turned away to head towards his dispensary station./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;""Ford?"Holly asked very sleepily. He paused - she clearly wasn't asleep. She began to wriggle around in the bed, trying to get more comfortable, then sighed and turned her head towards him./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;""Yes?"/p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;""Will you stay with me…for a while?" He paused. On one hand, he did in fact have duties to attend to (namely mixing some medicine for her to take home), but on the other hand, she span style="font-style: italic;"was/span his patient, he was duty-bound to care for her and he seemed to feel…something for her. What he felt exactly, he wasn't sure. Friendship maybe?/p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"span style="font-style: italic;"Well, I guess it might help,/span he thought, grabbing a chair and moving it over next to her, span style="font-style: italic;"human warmth can be very soothing. Studies have shown that holding a child's hand can help them fall asleep easier. /spanHe reached over and reapplied the facecloth on her forehead, then stared down at her hands. span style="font-style: italic;"Maybe, the same principle might apply here? /spanHe reached down and gently grasped her left hand in his, absently stroking the back of her hand with his gloved thumb./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;""Thank…you," Holly gave a faint smile and then fell asleep. Ford watched as her breathing began to slowly even out and her body relaxed. He looked down at her hands./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;""Strange," he mused quietly to himself, "These hands are so soft and delicate, yet they're the same hands responsible for tending crops and nurturing life. Stereotypes dictate that women are frail and weak, yet I see none of that..." he paused. span style="font-style: italic;"What the hell am I thinking?! I shouldn't be staring at a patient like this! Even if she is a friend. /span/p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"He gently pulled his hand away from hers, stood up and went over to his desk. Quickly sitting down, he felt his heart pounding. span style="font-style: italic;"Am I coming down with her sickness? Should I take my temperature? /spanHe reached for a thermometer and checked - definitely normal. So why did he feel his heart pounding after staying with Holly?/p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"Quietly, so as to not wake her, he went upstairs, dialled Frank's phone, informed him of the situation and then asked for him to check on the rest of Holly's farm. She would likely be out for a few hours and once she returned to the farm, the last thing she should be doing is more farm work. That, and he didn't want her to worry further./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"A short time later, he went back and checked up on her. She was still sleeping, her chest rising and falling gently. The facecloth had fallen off of her head. He quietly went over and placed a hand on her forehead to check to see if her fever had gone down. She was definitely cooler than before, but she wasn't quite out of the woods yet./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"He went over to his medicine station and pondered for a moment. She clearly was scared of needles and it wouldn't be right for him to administer medicine that way if she would react like that. He searched through his medicine stocks until he found another cold mixture that he had made a while ago for a customer who, like Holly, was afraid of needles. He pulled it out and left it next to the bed./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"It was night-time when Holly finally woke up, feeling much better. She looked to her left and spotted a bottle of medicine with a note next to it./p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"span style="font-style: italic;"Holly,/span/p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"span style="font-style: italic;"Take one teaspoon twice a day until it's all gone. Frank took care of your farm work for today, but I want you to take it easy for the next few days and make sure you eat. I know that you are very determined and passionate, but you need to care for yourself as well. And next time, please come to see me if you are not well. /span/p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"span style="font-style: italic;"I will be out with Wayne at the Garden Grill for the rest of the night. Don't worry about locking my door - it's always unlocked. Take care making your way home. I want you to contact Frank as soon as you style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"span style="font-style: italic;"Your friend,/span/p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"span style="font-style: italic;"Ford./span/p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;" /p  
p style="margin: 0in; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; color: #002060;"Holly stared at the note for a full minute. Specifically, those last two words - span style="font-style: italic;"Your Friend, Ford. /spanNot "Dr. Ford", but span style="font-style: italic;"friend./span She smiled, then put the medicine and note into her bag and quietly left the clinic. She placed one foot on the stairs heading towards South Westown and looked over at the Garden Grill, a smile forming on her face. span style="font-style: italic;"For a crackpot doctor, he's surprisingly kind and considerate when he wants to be,/span she thought./p 


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